Paul
Paul is a character in the Wayside School books. He does not appear in the cartoon. He is one of the many students in Mrs. Jewls's class. Appearance Currently, no physical description of Paul has been given. Leslie describes him as "heavy" in "Pigtails," but this likely applies for any kid Leslie would have to pull somewhere with her pigtails. Also, in his Brinckloe, Schick, and McCauley illustrations, he is depicted sporting a plaid sweater. Personality Paul is a student who has difficulty controlling his irresistable urges, primarily his urge to pull Leslie's pigtails. Paul's interest in Leslie's pigtails leans towards a border-line obsession, paying more attention to them than anything Mrs. Jewls is saying, and constantly trying to resist his desire to pull them. Aside from that, Paul is described as inattentive, never focusing on the lessons Mrs. Jewls is trying to teach the rest of the class. Paul is seen to frequently be pulled into his own imagination, such as in "Paul" where he holds an imaginary argument with Leslie's pigtails in an attempt to resist pulling them. Paul hates being the center of attention because of this, worrying that becoming the center of attention would put him in trouble. He tries his best to be a good friend to Leslie, though it is unknown if this friendship is sincere or just an attempt to pull her pigtails, as he feels that should be his reward for not pulling her pigtails for a few months. He is aware that what he is doing is hurting Leslie, and realizes that something must be wrong with him. In "A Story with a Disappointing Ending," he willingly goes to the counselor's office, despite how scared he is of Dr. Pickell. It's likely that Paul never intends to hurt anybody, but gets so tied up in his own interests that he ends up doing it anyway. Relationships Leslie 's pigtail. ("Paul," 2019)]]Paul has an "on-again, off-again" relationship with Leslie, mainly due to his obsession with her pigtails and his desire to pull them. In "Paul," he considers different activities he could do with Leslie's pigtails, including tying them together or to her chair, but most of all, he just wants to pull them. He is aware that this is wrong, as seen in both "Paul" and "A Story with a Disappointing Ending," but he has trouble helping himself. In "Pigtails," it is stated that Paul and Leslie are friends, though Leslie is disgusted with Paul when he asks to pull her pigtails, but eventually decides to compromise and give him the remaining split ends. However, when he falls out the window, ultimately Leslie ends up saving his life by pulling him inside with her pigtails, and Paul saves Leslie's life in return by "The Mean Mrs. Jewls." While the two seem to occasionally be on good terms, Leslie is willing to keep Paul in place, as seen in "Leslie," when it's stated that she uses her feet to kick Paul, and as seen in the aforementioned scene in "Pigtails." Appearances For a list of every chapter Paul is seen in, see here. Trivia *He is not in the cartoon, alongside Allison, Benjamin, Calvin, D.J., Dameon, Deedee, Jason, Joy, Kathy, Mac, Ron, Terrence, and Sue. Gallery See a gallery for Paul here. Category:Students Category:Characters Category:Males Category:Children Category:Mrs. Jewls's class Category:Introduced in Sideways Stories from Wayside School Category:Alive characters Category:Book-exclusive content